In a news release, Pearce said the legislation is in response to President Obama's "rushed decision to unilaterally declare the monument while ignoring input from local officials on public safety, and other major issues such as environmental and economic impacts," Pearce said. The bill would guarantee all federal, state and local law enforcement personnel, including Border Patrol, will have unfettered access to the national monument.

"This effort is a simple, targeted solution to secure our southern border and protect local communities, something that was overlooked by the President in his unilateral monument declaration," Pearce wrote in a joint statement he released with Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, chairman of the House Public Lands and Environmental Regulation Subcommittee. "Restrictive land management policies can have a negative impact on border security. In Arizona's Chiricahua National Monument, a Park Service employee was brutally assaulted and left for dead last year. The Organ Pipe National Monument in Arizona has long been threatened by drug and human smugglers, as the Park Service readily admits. My goal is to prevent the same scenario from unfolding in Doña Ana County.

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State Rep. Jeff Steinborn, who actively supported the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument legislation in his work with the New Mexico Wilderness Alliance, said he hadn't seen the legislation, so he couldn't comment on its specific details. But he criticized Pearce's explanation for introducing the bill.

"Once again, Steve Pearce can't stand up to his own rhetoric," Steinborn said. "Although he has introduced this legislation, there has not been any community meetings or any public discussion about his bill."